1、考研英语（阅读）-试卷 53 及答案解析(总分：70.00，做题时间：90 分钟)一、Reading Comprehensio(总题数：7，分数：70.00)1.Section II Reading Comprehension（分数：10.00）_2.Part ADirections: Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D.（分数：10.00）_When one of his employees phoned in sick last year,
2、Scott McDonald, CEO of Monument Security in Sacramento, California, decided to investigate. He had already informed his staff of 400 security guards and patrol drivers that he was installing Xora, a software program that tracks workers“ whereabouts through GPS technology on their company cell phones
3、. A Web-based “geo-fence“ aroundwork territories would alert the boss if workers strayed or even drove too fast. It also enabled him to route workers more efficiently. So when McDonald logged on, the program told him exactly where his worker wasand it wasn“t in bed with the sniffles. “How come you“r
4、e eastbound on 80 heading to Reno right now if you“re sick?“ asked the boss. There was a long silencethe sound of a job ending followed by, “You got me.“ Learn that truth, and learn it well: what you do at work is the boss“s business. Xora is just one of the new technologies from a host of companies
5、 that have sprung up in the past two years peddling products and servicessoftware, GPS, video and phone surveillance, even investigatorsthat let managers get to know you really well. “Virtually nothing you do at work on a computer can“t be monitored,“ says Jeremy Gruber, legal director of the Nation
6、al Workrights Institute, which advocates workplace privacy. Nine out of 10 employers observe your electronic behavior, according to the Center for Business Ethics at Bentley College. A study by the American Management Association and the ePolicy Institute found 76% of employers watch you surf the We
7、b and 36% track content, keystrokes and time spent at the keyboard. You can“t really blame companies for watching our Web habits, since 45% of us admit that surfing is our favorite time waster, according to a joint survey by S and AOL. A Northeast technology company found that several employees who
8、frequently complained of overwork spent all day on MyS. Businesses argue that their snooping is justified. Not only are they trying to guard trade secrets and intellectual property, but they also must ensure that workers comply with government regulations, such as keeping medical records and credit-
9、card numbers private. And companies are liable for allowing a hostile work environmentsay, one filled with porn-filled computer screensthat may lead to lawsuits. “People write very loosely with their e-mails, but they can unintentionally reach thousands, like posters throughout a work site,“ says Ch
10、arles Spearman of diversity-management consultants Tucker Spearman theelites humbly confess their ignorance to Congress or a grand jury, and the search for new patterns begins. Tellingly, scholars date the modern scientific study of wisdom to the work of the American psychologist Vivian Clayton in t
11、he malaise-ridden 1970s. Clayton devised the first empirical tests for wisdom, which she defined as the ability to acquire knowledge and analyze it both logically and emotionallypicking up on the work begun by Socrates. So it“s no coincidence that several dozen researchers in fields ranging from neu
12、roscience to art, music and law have just received wisdom-seeking grants under the auspices of the University of Chicago. The $2.7 million program, funded by the Templeton Foundation, is called Defining Wisdom, a name that implies the researchers will know what they were looking for once they find i
13、t. Wisdom, according to Robert J. Sternberg of Tufts University, the author of several books on the topic, is still an obscure field with minimal academic cachet. With so much at stake, the program“s directors, psychologists John Cacioppo and Howard Nusbaum, dismissed the traditional approach to wis
14、dom research; rather they cast their nets wide and deep into the pools of academy. The 38 proposals they approved include ones aimed at finding wisdom in computer operations and in classical literature. Starting at the beginning, one scholar observes that “language is the medium by which wisdom-rela
15、ted knowledge is usually conveyed.“ That sounds self-evident, but another scientist proposes to “explore music as a form of wisdom.“ “We are trying to think out of the box,“ says Nusbaum. Cacioppo and Nusbaum dismiss arguments about the inherent circularity of searching for wisdom at the same time a
16、s defining it. But they have some preconceptions about what they expect to find. They see “wisdom“ in part as a corrective to the “rational choice“ pattern of decision making, the foundation of free-market economics. Rational choice holds that everyone“s happiness is best served when people maximize
17、 their short-term individual gains, even at the expense of the broad interests of society or the long-term future. That is precisely opposite the approach of, for example, ants, which are entirely indifferent to their individual fates and don“t, as a rule, over-expand out of reckless greed.（分数：10.00
18、）(1).Which can be inferred from the first paragraph?（分数：2.00）A.The quest for wisdom is an old-fashioned economic indicator.B.When things proceed smoothly, people don“t need to go searching for wisdom.C.Billionaires listed on the Forbes are demonstrating the profits of free market.D.In the long run,
19、all the wealthiest individuals will confess their ignorance.(2).Which of the following is true of Vivian Clayton?（分数：2.00）A.Scholars considered her work as the start of modern scientific study of wisdom.B.She was one of the greatest American psychologists born in the 1970s.C.She designed empirical t
20、ests for wisdom without defining its concept.D.She achieved more in the work of questing for wisdom than Socrates.(3).Robert J.Sternberg of Tufts University suggests that（分数：2.00）A.defining wisdom requires joint efforts of different fields.B.research on wisdom still lacks academic achievements.C.wis
21、dom can only be explained with interdisciplinary supports.D.researchers have to rely on grants for scientific study.(4).The sentence “We are trying to think out of the box“ (Lines 6-7, Paragraph 4) suggests that（分数：2.00）A.they will try to find wisdom out of the box.B.they will probe deep into the po
22、ols of academy.C.they will break away from the conventions.D.they will pursue their traditional approach.(5).According to the text, “rational choice“ holds that（分数：2.00）A.decision making is not linked with wisdom in a sense.B.happiness relies on short-term individual gains.C.individual happiness har
23、ms the broad interests of society.D.individual fates change with reckless greed.Apart from a new football stadium and some smart university buildings, most of Middlesbrough looks as though it came to a dead halt in the 1980s. It boomed on steel and chemicals after iron ore was discovered in 1850. Ju
24、st over a century later, as Britain“s traditional industries failed, it seemed to have reached the end of the road. Now government leaders hope that splendor and glamour can revive it. The most startling sign of this improbable ambition is an expensive art gallery. The 19.2 million Middlesbrough Ins
25、titute of Modern Art (MIMA) houses the local council“s collection of modern British paintings and ceramics. It opens on January 28th with works on loan for the occasion by artists rarely seen in the regionPicasso, Matisse, Jackson Pollockalongside pictures by contemporary names such as Chris ofili a
26、nd Damien Hirst. The glass-fronted modernist gallery, by Dutch architect Erick van Egeraat, sits on once-ruined land opposite the Victorian town hall and 1960s council buildings. The landscaped space in between has become a vast new square. “Middlesbrough lost its heart years ago,“ says Ray Mallon,
27、the town“s frank elected mayor. “Now we have created a new heart.“ Locals are dubious. It looks nice, but they can“t see many people going to it; those who want culture go to Newcastle. Mr. Mallon is not worried by such comments. He says MIMA will lure some of the 7 million people who live within an
28、 hour and a halfs drive from the town, and persuade them to spend money there. With 5% of the town“s 137,600 residents claiming unemploymenttwice the national averageand business registrations at half the national rate, outside money is needed. Using art for regeneration is a well-tried process, esp
29、ecially in northern England. Liverpool“s Tate North gallery and Salford“s Lowry Centre succeed because they are part of bigger attractions and in big cities. But Gateshead“s Baltic Mills art gallery and Sunderland“s National Glass Centre have struggled to draw visitors, and both have needed extra su
30、bsidies. Godfrey Worsdale, MIMA“s director, reckons he will achieve his aim of 110,000 visitors a year. Galleries that run into trouble, he says, tend to have single themes with niche appeal. Still, since 96% of MIMA“s cost has come from public funds and as two-thirds of the 1 million running cost w
31、ill fall on local taxpayers, the council is taking a risk. “It is not going to be profitable,“ says Mr. Mallon bravely. “What it can do is make the town profitable.“（分数：10.00）(1).According to the first two paragraphs, the “improbable ambition“ (Line 1, Paragraph 2) is（分数：2.00）A.to make Middlesbrough
32、 boom on steel and chemicals again.B.to revive the traditional industries in Middlesbrough.C.to revive Middlesbrough with glitz and glamour.D.to build an expensive gallery in Middlesbrough.(2).By saying“Middlesbrough lost its heart years ago“(Line 3, Paragraph 3), Ray Mallon implies that the town ha
33、s lost（分数：2.00）A.its confidence a long time ago.B.its attraction a long time ago.C.an important organ long ago.D.its way a long time ago.(3).Money from outside the town is quite needed because（分数：2.00）A.few people will pay a visit to Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art.B.the local unemployment rat
34、e is high and business registration rate is low.C.many people will choose to go to Newcastle to experience culture.D.the town suffers the high unemployment ratetwice the national average.(4).Gateshead“s Baltic Mills art gallery and Sunderland“s National Glass Centre are cited as examples to show tha
35、t（分数：2.00）A.they are confronted with difficulties in appealing to the visitors.B.using art for regeneration ensures the success.C.they are not part of bigger attractions or in big cities.D.using art for regeneration sometimes also takes a risk.(5).It is suggested in the last paragraph that the goal
36、of MIMA is（分数：2.00）A.to make big profits.B.to have single themes with big appeal.C.to bring profits to the whole town.D.to draw as many as 110,000 visitors a year.The money is there. So why is it not being spent? That is the big puzzle about the rich world“s efforts to improve health in poor countri
37、es. In June the leaders of the G8 promised up to $8 billion to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, an umbrella group coordinating health aid. The Global Fund closed its latest round of funding applications this week but much of themoney committed remains unused. officials at the
38、 fund insist that all is fine: disbursements always lag commitments and money can be released only if it will be spent effectively. But experts such as Joseph Dwyer of Management Sciences for Health say that the pitiful state of poor countries“ health services is the main reason for the gap between
39、what is promised and what is spent. Julian Schweitzer of the World Bank says that physical and human shortages in local health services represent “a huge bottleneck to aid“. Now the aid efforts may be making things worse. Jordan Kassalow of the Scojo Foundation, an American charity, observes that ri
40、ch singleissue outfits tend to divert the best medical talent to trendy causes and away from basic medicine against diarrhoea and respiratory infectionsthe chief killers of children. Laurie Garrett of the Council on Foreign Relations has a different worry: those anti-corruption efforts have pushed d
41、onors into an obsession with often meaningless short-term targets. The result is a never-ending stream of documents and meetings. A sharp focus on process and targets ordained from on high makes it harder to be flexible and innovative or to take advantage of enterprising locals. In poor countries, l
42、aments Ms Garrett, “we almost spit on the private sector.“ But it is the private sector that may offer the most practical chance of progress. Fed up with the costs of an unhealthy workforce, many big local and multinational firms in Africa and Asia are now offering their own innovative health scheme
43、s. These started as simple anti-AIDS efforts at mining firms such as Anglo American. Now they have spread. HSBC, a London-based international bank, recently started a scheme to improve its suppliers“ and customers“ health. In training, too, private-sector and voluntary efforts may work better than o
44、fficial programmes. The International Centre for Equal Healthcare Access has trained thousands of local health-care workers in South-East Asia. Kenya“s HealthStore Foundation has helped nurses and community health workers set up dozens of for-profit clinics that reach patients government clinics don
45、“t. Such ideas may yet transform the world“s most dilapidated health systems into better and more far-reaching onesif only the current wave of top-down spending does not drown them out.（分数：10.00）(1).According to some experts, Global Fund delays the disbursements because（分数：2.00）A.there remains a hug
46、e gap between what is promised and what is spent.B.the $8 billion can“t be released until it will be spent effectively.C.the situation of health-care in poor countries presents a tough barrier.D.the physical condition of local people imposes a bottleneck to aid.(2).Jordan Kassalow believes that the
47、aid efforts fail to（分数：2.00）A.direct the medical talents to most urgent causes in needed places.B.provide top-class medical personnel with comprehensive-issue outfits.C.dispatch elite medical experts for children to poor countries.D.divert medical talents to chief killers of children away from trend
48、y causes.(3).Donors from enterprising locals often（分数：2.00）A.willingly devote themselves to significant short-term targets.B.actively respond to the tasks assigned from on high.C.helplessly find themselves stuck in documents and meetings.D.bitterly meet the objection from ungrateful local people.(4)
49、.It can be inferred from Paragraph 4 that in Africa and Asia（分数：2.00）A.the private sector is the last straw for health services.B.the physical condition of workforce is rather weak.C.some miners might have been infected with AIDS.D.HSBC attracts customers with innovative health schemes.(5).We can learn from the last paragraph that the author believes（分数：2.00）A.training converts clinic
